he tragic
loss of lives in this country’s war on Iraq was made a little more real at
the last City Council meeting as everyone attending beheld the
tear-stained face of Martha Holder. She is the mother of Marine Lance
Corporal William Wayne White, one of the first to die in Iraq when his
military vehicle fell into a canal.
Ms.
Holder was accompanied by her third son, Brian Holder, and the family’s
pastor, the Rev. James Barnett, as the City Council acknowledged the
street renaming in Bushwick, Brooklyn in honor of their fallen loved
one.
The Holder’s councilmember, Erik Dilan, began by providing some
biographical information about Lance Corporal White. He was born in
Brooklyn on February 6, 1979 to Martha Holder and Mark White. He was
raised in Bushwick, Brooklyn where he attended Pilgrim Christian
Academy, St. Elizabeth Seton School and Bushwick High School. White was
also an active member at St. Thomas Episcopal Church where he served as
an altar boy and a member of the youth choir.
Upon graduation from high school, White followed in his father’s
footsteps and enlisted in the Marine Corps. He served as a radio
operator with the Third Assault Amphibian Battalion.
In
September of 2001, William White married Mychaele. Although he was
scheduled to end his service in the Marines in February 2003, he
continued to serve in light of the war in Iraq.
Lance Corporal William Wayne White is survived by his wife Mychaele,
his parents Martha Holder and Mark White, his younger brothers Charles
and Brian Holder, his grandparents Doris White and Pedro Fernandez, as
well as a host of friends, family, and fellow Marines.
Dilan’s concluding statement was brief and heartfelt: "Ms. Holder,
there are no words that I can say to thank you for the service that your
son provided.
If
there’s anything I can do to make the burden of his loss any easier,
you’ve got a friend in me."
Speaker Gifford Miller added his condolences, telling Ms. Holder that
it was an honor to rename a street for her son. "All of us in the City
of New York recognize that your son is and was a hero because he
responded to the call of his country and gave his life for it," Miller
commented. "Our hearts and our prayers are with you in this difficult
time. We hope that this small token of respect for your son’s
accomplishments helps demonstrate the entire City’s support for you and
your family."
The grief-stricken mother was visibly moved by the Council Members’
remarks. When she regained some of her composure, Martha Holder said
that William was her first-born son, and she thanked God for allowing
her to have him for 24 years. "He didn’t have to go to Iraq," she
continued. "He went because one of his Marine friends was too nervous to
go, and he went to accompany him." She finished by thanking the City
Council for remembering her son.
Last
to speak was the Rev. James Barnett. He said that as he saw it, in
renaming a street for Lance Corporal William White, "We send a message
clearly to the President of this country to send our children home.
These are babies here." And he said to the councilmembers, "Let’s keep
praying that God will touch Bush’s heart, that he will hear God speaking
to his heart and do the right and moral thing for God’s sake, and bring
our children home!"
